Intimacy in Bonnard's World

Why a walk in the Bonnard exhibition at the Phillips is a breeze!

If you are having a gloomy day, a visit to the Bonnard exhibition will surely bring back the sun into your life. The birds will start singing, the sun will shine brightly and you'll be transported to a French garden with luscious fruit and gateaux platters with a cup of coffee and a great overlook. Tapestries and Persian carpets mixed with Parisian blue tiles take you away to a French abode. One minute you are sitting pretty with your whole extended family and another you are in the privacy of a bathroom taking a bath in the baignoire. You'll read your morning paper as you sip on a cup of coffee and nibble on a delectable pâtisserie (Pain au Chocolat, Croissant, Millefeuille) while looking down the street to see the neighbor across the street standing at her balcony, a man is walking his dog. Action abounds wherever you look. Life is in the street, in the house, in the bathroom, in the boudoir, life is happening! La joie de vivre and the art of good living is captured in the world of Pierre Bonnard. The Phillips Collection museum brings one there, to all these intimate places through Bonnard's artwork. In Pierre Bonnard's large paintings, one can't help but dive into the artist's world, get involved in his family life, wonder about the conversations he had with his wife Marthe, and be immersed in the intimacy Bonnard projects in his work. An intimate affair between the viewer and Bonnard's artwork occurs almost instantly upon viewing the artist's work, leaving us, the viewer, wanting to know more... What happened to his wife Marthe, what did they eat in the garden for breakfast, what were they reading in the paper, what are their thoughts? The intimacy is very strong and catches our gaze, our thoughts and our minds. Beyond the whimsical yellow impressionistic canvases, beyond the painterly beauty and skill, intimacy emerges resolute, pleasant and attractive. We see intimacy, we see love: love between spouses, love to one's pets, love to one's garden, love to one's city, love of family, love for the soft Summer breeze and warm sunlight through a welcoming open window, love to the view from that window with its swaying palm trees. We see love for art, and love of one's life delivered through the art presented by Bonnard. Ultimately, gratitude is what one feels. The exhibition is so pleasant, like a breeze of fresh air that leaves one with a heartwarming sentiment after a day well spent at the museum. We are not agitated nor anguished, we leave happy with a spring in our steps as we carry on with our day. Pierre Bonnard's vision does that and more - it helps one see life through a large open format; yet so intimate and delicate but most importantly full of life. A work of art can do that and more. And, in Bonnard's world we surely dive. We dive into the day to day life of the artist, we accept it, we embrace it and we enjoy it. Hence, it rings true what Bonnard uttered, "It's not a matter of painting life. It's a matter of giving life to painting."
"BONNARD’S WORLDS" retrospective exhibition is ongoing at The Phillips Collection museum till June 2. For details about the exhibit visit: https://www.phillipscollection...

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For more about multidisciplinary visionary, V. Borchert, visit: https://www.vianborchert.com/

For Borchert's latest curation "In Spring" visit: https://www.vb-contemporary.co...